NEW YORK, NY - Ranieri Real Estate Partners LP (RREP), a real estate financial services company, and private equity funds affiliated with WL Ross & Co. LLC (WL Ross) have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Deutsche Bank Berkshire Mortgage (the company or DBBM), a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank, the firms announced today. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
DBBM originates multi-family loans for Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA). It is the second largest originator of Fannie Mae loans and services a $28 billion multi-family loan portfolio. The company was founded in 1988 and became a unit of Deutsche Bank in 2004. It has 160 employees and operates out of three primary offices: Bethesda, Boston and Irvine, and has additional offices in Dallas, Los Angeles, Nashville, and Seattle. Jeff Day will remain as CEO and the current management team and staff are expected to remain with the company.
Jon Vaccaro, co-founder and CEO of Ranieri Real Estate Partners LP, said, “The DBBM team has built a top-tier company with a solid business model and proven track record of providing needed liquidity to the multi-family housing industry. We are very pleased to partner with WL Ross, Jeff Day and the DBBM team at this important time. We expect the fundamentals of the multi-family market to continue to improve and the shifting preference toward renting over home ownership to fuel significant new demand, making DBBM a strong platform for future growth."
James B. Lockhart III, Vice Chairman of WL Ross, added, “We believe that multi-family is a fundamentally important and growing sector of the housing market. We have long been interested in this sector, and we are confident that we have identified the right vehicle and point in the real estate cycle to pursue an investment. We look forward to working with Ranieri Real Estate Partners to build on DBBM's strong performance.”
The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of the year, and the company will be renamed following the closing. Completion of the transaction is not contingent on financing but is subject to approval by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the FHA as well as other customary closing conditions.
Ranieri Real Estate Partners LP (RREP), founded in 2010, is part of Ranieri Partners, an investment management company focused on financial services opportunities. RREP provides global advisory, investment management and capital market solutions to participants throughout the commercial real estate spectrum. The Firm is dedicated to serving as a valuable partner in all phases of commercial real estate ownership. The Firm works with entities including owner/operators, financial institutions, and Government Sponsored Enterprises. The RREP team brings deep real estate industry expertise and leverages the intellectual capital of the broader Ranieri platform.
WL Ross & Co. LLC, founded by Wilbur L. Ross, Jr. and based in New York City, has sponsored and managed more than $10 billion of private equity investments since its inception in 2000. Many